Determination of the empirical polarity parameter E T (30) for binary solvent mixtures

Empirical solvent polarity parameters E T (30) were determined by UV–visible spectrophotometry using Dimroth– Reichardt's betaine dye, as a function of composition, for (aprotic + aprotic) and (aprotic + protic) binary solvent mixtures. For (aprotic + aprotic) solvent systems the cosolvent was toluene, and the other solvents used were selected with different structural characteristics and an extensive range of polarity: chloroform, 1,4‐dioxane, ethyl acetate, tetrahydrofuran, acetone, nitromethane and N , N ‐dimethylformamide. For (aprotic + protic) solvent systems, the protic cosolvent used was methanol, and the aprotic solvents selected were toluene, chloroform, 1,1,1‐trichloroethane, tetrahydrofuran, acetone, N , N ‐dimethylformamide, and dimethyl sulphoxide. Each system was analysed according to its deviations from additivity due to selective solvation of the betaine. A preliminary application of these empirical solvent polarity parameters was related to the solvent effects in a simple example of a nucleophilic aromatic substitution reaction.